


Standard Deviation

by badomens444, Suspicious_Popsicle



Series: Trouble in a Black Hoodie [1]
Category: Tales of Vesperia
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Fluri, Gen, occupation bingo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-29
Updated: 2013-12-29
Packaged: 2018-01-06 14:44:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1108086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badomens444/pseuds/badomens444, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Suspicious_Popsicle/pseuds/Suspicious_Popsicle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>A/N: bad0mens came up with the basic idea here, we chatted about it, and I ended up completely running away with it, which makes me a terrible friend. At least she enjoyed the story. Five shorts from me, and a bonus, alternate ending by bad0mens.</p>
<p>Oh, she also came up with the Don’s class. =D</p>
<p>Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from Tales of Vesperia and do not belong to me.</p>
    </blockquote>





	Standard Deviation

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: bad0mens came up with the basic idea here, we chatted about it, and I ended up completely running away with it, which makes me a terrible friend. At least she enjoyed the story. Five shorts from me, and a bonus, alternate ending by bad0mens.
> 
> Oh, she also came up with the Don’s class. =D
> 
> Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from Tales of Vesperia and do not belong to me.

Flynn walked Estelle out of the Black Hole Bistro and saw her into a cab. He could have ridden along, but he’d heard her phone go off toward the end of their meal, and he had recognized the special ringtone she’d set for Rita. Sure enough, as the car pulled away from the curb, he caught the light from the screen as she lifted the phone to her ear. With a faint smile, he turned his steps toward his apartment. It wasn’t all that far off, anyway.

He pulled his coat a little closer against the sharp wind that blew down the street, and watched the people as he walked. He was used to the anonymity of living in a big city, but it still felt different when it was a _new_ city, when it wasn’t _his_ city. He’d transferred schools at the beginning of the previous semester, but he still didn’t feel at home. Having a friend like Estelle helped, but he still missed his old circle.

At least there wasn’t much to distract him from studying.

The thought made him sigh. He was getting a little too desperate to find a bright side if he was counting uninterrupted homework time as a bonus. The semester break couldn’t come soon enough. He’d be able to go back for a little while, and then his homesickness would abate for another couple of months.

The crowds of evening pedestrians thinned out as he got closer to his apartment building. While it wasn’t exactly on the wrong side of the tracks, it wasn’t in what could be called a nice neighborhood, either. There were quite a few low-end bars and clubs on his street, and more a little further off the beaten path, places he’d found while exploring the area and definitely wouldn’t be patronizing.

There were still several blocks to go when he heard the commotion. From down one of the alleys came slurred, mocking laughter and lowered voices, followed quickly by a ringing clatter and an angry shout. Flynn peered down the alley, squinting to see in the dim light shed by the single grimy bulb over a side door halfway down. Two burly men were standing near an overturned trashcan next to the door. They were unsteady on their feet, probably fresh out of a bar and far enough into their cups to make trouble on the street. He thought at first that they’d been arguing with each other, until a third man stepped forward into the light.

He’d been hidden at first, camouflaged in the shadows by his black hoodie and dark jeans, but he cracked his knuckles as he stepped forward, and his smile was not a friendly one as he tossed long, black hair out of his eyes. It wasn’t the long hair or his lean build that surprised Flynn. It was the fact that he _knew_ this person. Well, he recognized him, at any rate. They had a couple of classes together at the university. Lowell. That was his last name. He couldn’t remember the rest of it.

“See,” Lowell said, “I asked you real nice not to touch me. I even gave you a warning when you didn’t listen the first time. Now, I’m just gonna have to kick both of your drunk asses.”

He charged the two men. He was quick and they were inebriated, but it was still two big bruisers against one smaller fighter and both sides took hits. Flynn whipped out his phone and took two quick steps toward the fight.

“Cut it out, or I’ll call the cops!”

“Call ‘em!” He was surprised to hear Lowell shout back. It was followed quickly by a grunt as he caught a glancing blow to his side. “Bet you I can teach these guys a lesson before they get here!”

He sounded like he was actually having fun, and Flynn gaped, rooted to the spot, as Lowell proceeded to do exactly what he had first said he was going to do: kick ass. The drunks didn’t have anything on him. They got in a few lucky hits, but most of their punches went wild, their reaction time being nowhere near quick enough to keep up with their target.

Flynn knew how to fight, but he’d never been in a situation where he would have to use his training outside the classroom. He hesitated, waiting to see if he would need to step in. Getting involved in a drunken brawl was definitely not a good idea, but if the tide turned….

One of the men grabbed Lowell by the arms from behind. He’d managed to sneak up while his buddy was being used as a punching bag. Having gained the upper hand, they weren’t too concerned about whether it was fair or not. Flynn was rushing forward before he’d made a conscious decision to do so. He saw Lowell take two solid punches before he managed to wriggle his way out of his hoodie. Dropping to the ground, he threw himself to the side in time for the next blow meant for him to slam into the thug, instead. While the two men were trying to work out what had just happened, he kicked the legs out from under the one who’d gotten the hits in, then sprang up and yanked his hoodie out of the other one’s hands. The man barely had time to register what was going on before the jacket was flung over his head. Blinded, one solid punch to the face dropped him. He toppled into the garbage, and Lowell snatched his hoodie back once more and turned away to leave his defeated opponents groaning in the alley.

Speechless, Flynn let him walk by. Though he smirked as he passed, there was blood oozing from the corner of his mouth. Out on the sidewalk, he turned to walk in the same direction Flynn had been heading.

“Hey, wait…!”

“Ugh.” Lowell sniffed his hoodie, then held it out in front him as he paused beneath a streetlight. Flynn caught up with him there as he balled the jacket up, tying the sleeves around the bundle and letting it dangle from his hand like a shopping bag. “I just washed this.”

“Are you all right? You’re bleeding.”

Lowell wiped at his face with the back of his hand, briefly showing off scraped and bloody knuckles. He leaned in close, and his eyes were gray and very bright beneath the streetlight’s glare. Flynn took an involuntary step back.

“Did I get it?”

“Yeah.” There was still a smear across his pale skin but his manner, his energy, had taken Flynn aback and he didn’t point it out. “What was going on back there?”

“Just a couple creeps thinking they could get away with a little grab-ass. Thanks for the assist. Most people don’t bother.”

He started off down the street again, and Flynn hurried to keep pace.

“You say that like it’s a common occurrence.”

“Common enough,” he replied with a shrug. “I get their type at my night job, sometimes.”

“Night job?”

Lowell stopped again and turned to stare at him. His smirk grew a bit wider, turning into something approaching a proper smile.

“You’re Flynn, right? We’re in Whitehorse’s class together. You’re the guy always arguing with him.”

“Debating. And with a course called ‘The Philosophy of Law and Justice’ I would be remiss if I didn’t question his view of the subject matter.”

Lowell chuckled. “We’ve got psych statistics together, too. Weird that we’ve never talked before.”

“I’m surprised you knew I was in that class. When you aren’t absent, you tend to sleep through the lectures.”

“I notice things.” There was something in his smile that made Flynn look away. “Besides, it’s math. Long as there’s a textbook, it’s all step-by-step. I don’t need a lecture to figure it out.”

“You might be sorry you missed yesterday. We’re due for a quiz in the morning.”

“Shit. Thanks for the heads up. New stuff, or what we’ve been doing?”

“We started the next chapter.”

“Good thing I’m off tonight.” He came to a sudden halt next to a bus stop sign. “Well, this is my stop.”

According to the sign, the bus wasn’t due for a little while yet, and Flynn hesitated. “Do you want me to wait with you? In case those guys come back?”

He outright laughed at that and waved the offer off. “I can take care of myself.”

Flynn could have insisted, but he didn’t. There was something strange about Lowell, something he hadn’t expected from the slacker that he shared a couple courses with. He turned and walked away, focusing on keeping a normal pace. Half a block away, he heard a lively ‘See you tomorrow, Flynn!’ called out over the distance between them. He wondered if tomorrow they would talk, or if the only deviation from their norm would be a nod in greeting.

He was too far away to turn back when he realized that he still couldn’t remember Lowell’s first name.


End file.
